Muslim Slave System in Medieval India c12.22

c12.22

After Alauddins death, his favourite slave, General and Wazir, Malik Kafur, wished to gather all power in his own hands and towards that end began to order the execution of one prince after another. He sent four Paiks by the names of Mubshir, Bashir, Salih and Munir to blind the Sultans son Mubarak Khan. But when the Paiks approached him in his prison cell Prince Mubarak reminded them of their loyalty and duty which they owed to the sons of the late king. Impressed by Mubaraks appeal they not only left him untouched, but also murdered Kafur and thus facilitated Mubarak Khans ascension to the throne.⁴⁹ Similarly, Rai Bhairon Bhatti, the personal attendant of Firoz Shah Tughlaq, came to his rescue when his own kith and kin made plans to murder the Sultan.⁵⁰ But there was no hard and fast behavioural pattern. The king was supreme but if the Paiks developed loyalty towards a nobleman who was inimical to the sultan, they could as well kill the king. That is how Sarwar-ul-Mulk, the Wazir of Sultan Mubarak Shah Saiyyad (1421-34), got the latter killed with the help of a group of Paiks.⁵¹ On the other hand, the loyalty of Hindu officers and soldiers has become legendary.